SUNY Canton to use SUNY Potsdam grad students as residential advisors

CANTON  St. Lawrence Countys two SUNY campuses have harnessed a little creativity to go beyond the systems demand for more shared services between them.

This semester, SUNY Canton is using a SUNY Potsdam graduate student, Andrew C. Metz of Ilion, as a residential adviser at one of its dormitories.

It seems like its a win-win situation, said John M. Kennedy, director of residence life at SUNY CANTON. Sometimes with the shared services, people are worried about losing jobs; this is a situation where everybody seems to be coming out ahead.

Graduate students are used as residential advisers on most college campuses, but SUNY Canton doesnt have any graduate programs. Typically, the school hires full-time employees to staff its dormitories; however, it saves money by using SUNY Potsdam students.

Before this arrangement, we have in each residence hall one director, they are usually full-time employees, Mr. Kennedy said. In Heritage Hall where Andrew is now working, he had a full-time director who left to take another job in December.

Mr. Metz said he is adjusting to culture clash between the two campuses.

Potsdam has a lot of people in the education program, like myself, or at the Crane school, while here (at Canton) there are a lot of people in accounting and veterinary sciences, he said. The clientele is a bit different, but everybody has been very pleasant. I get along great with my staff.

Mr. Metz is a student teacher in Hogansburg.

It is quite the ride every afternoon, but I am very glad the position was open and available, he said.

Under the arrangement, Residence Life at SUNY Canton pays a portion of the students graduate tuition.

We reimburse the cost of up to three classes per semester, the student will take their classes and out of my budget I pay Potsdam for those classes, Mr. Kennedy said.

The school also offers free room and board to Mr. Metz.

Im not sure yet if this is going to save me money, he said. I took out my loan at the beginning of the year and Im still trying to figure out the credit situation.

The savings for us are about half the cost of a full-time position, Mr. Kennedy said.

Full-time residential advisers make just over $30,000 a year, he said.

Currently, only one SUNY Potsdam graduate residential advisor is in use at Canton, but Mr. Kennedy said more may be used in the future.

The other big benefit is you get kind of a young, often times ambitious person who is looking to make their mark in the working world in a student residence, he said. Potsdam has some really brilliant graduate students. It brings some of the culture of SUNY Canton and SUNY Potsdam together.

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